Archives

Archives

Sustained Outrage

The Charleston Gazette has a long and proud tradition as a crusading newspaper. Our late publisher, W.E. "Ned" Chilton III coined the phrase "sustained outrage" and insisted the Gazette live up to that motto with long-term coverage of important issues facing West Virginia and the nation.

The mission of the "Gazette Watchdog" is simple: To carry on that tradition. We make a commitment to our readers to serve as a public watchdog over government, business, and other powerful entities in West Virginia society, to ensure that the public interest is protected.

Very important in this case is whether the justices will allow to stand a lower court ruling that would allow state and local agencies to withhold from release any documents submitted to them.

Read the petition for appeal to learn more. Charles Town lawyer Stephen G. Skinner and WVU law professor Pat McGinley, who represent the Observer, explained:

It is simply preposterous to assume that the Legislature intended for the WVFOIA’s definition of “public record” to drastically curtail the scope of public access to important records in government files because they were not “prepared” by a public body.

Such a construction of the statute would devastate the public’s right to information about the conduct of the public’s business.